Project based learning

What an idea!  Placing kids in a position where they'll actually use the knowledge...

Integrating technology in EVERY classroom

A Commitment to High Tech Education | Edutopia is an article that I found when browsing around Edutopia. It's a great example of a school that is incorporating technology in the classroom in a positive way. These students are utilizing technology tools that enhance their learning experience. Even the cheerleading team is using technology! In some of the articles I've read about schools incorporating technology in their classrooms, I feel as though it's becoming the main focus, taking place of skills that still need to be learned and practiced, like handwriting for example. This school however uses a balance and it seems to be working well!

"High Tech High"

Yes, High Tech High is actually the name of a high school in San Diego county, but High Tech High now incorporates nine schools: one elementary school, three middle schools, and five high schools. The students who learn at these schools are lottery selected and present a very diverse group of students. These students "embody the High Tech High design principles of personalization, adult world connection, common intellectual mission, and teacher as designer". It's a fascinating video! Maybe there are an I'm unaware of them, but I wish there were schools like this here in Michigan and if there are, I wish there was more of them. I would of loved to go to this school, check it out! Let me know what ya think.

Medical Breakthrough for treating blindess

I was absolutely amazed at an article I came across when browsing CBS Health Watch the other day. After a little research I found out that this idea was nothing new. Still, I wonder if this could have an effect not only on adults, but children and therefore the classroom as well. According to CBS New York, a new microchip has been developed that could help change the way blindness is approached. This microchip unlike others, relies on the eye to transmit the images. It processes light and sends signals to the brain, taking the place of the retina that is implanted behind the eye. So far, this chip has helped three patients who haven't seen anything in years, see images in black and white. Scientists soon hope to develop the chip to treat various types of blindness and allow patients to see in color!

Aside from the obvious benefits, I believe this breakthrough, if pursued further could give children who are blind an entirely new outlook in the classroom. Best case scenario I believe, children would not need the use of assistive technology in the classroom like they would previously if they were blind. This could also allow children to be placed in the "traditional" style classroom which people have been so fond of. While of course, this style of classroom will not work for all students. Reading this article on CBS Health Watch, reminds me that I take my eye sight for granted. It's not something that I've ever been without. I can't even imagine what it would be like after years of not being able to see to be given something so miraculous as sight.

Thinking about it further, maybe this 'gift' of sight wouldn't be so miraculous for everyone. Aside from various side effects which I am unaware of but I'm sure will and would be present, I wonder if this would at all be comparative to the debates of cochlear implants? I wonder if the opinions would be different for someone who is born blind, and for someone who loses their eye sight later in life. So many questions, I hope to see more conversation and movement of this topic in the future!

Technology in a k-12 classroom

I agree with this video in a sense that yes it would be wonderful to be able to use technology to inspire and engage students in learning. But where is the line drawn? Is there such thing as having too much technology used in the classroom and not enough of the basic skills? As I observe in the classroom, I'm seeing less and less focus on tools like handwriting that students my age were so focused on in elementary school. I wonder if at a point in the future, students will no longer need to use things like books and paper to practice the basics, or if in the future the basics like writing will turn into typing as the norm.

"The flip side of freedom is responsibility."

What if one of your school's favorite sayings was the flip side of freedom is responsibility...? Well, this is precisely the 'motto' of the the Manhattan Free School where students are given equal rights to decide how their school is run. A group of 23 students ranging in ages 5 to 18 years old have the option to participate in playing video games and comic book making as opposed to typical subjects like mathematics. Now, if there is a child who wants to learn a specific subject like calculus for example, this information will be available for students. With two full time teachers and a principal who makes a measly $3,000, this school relies heavily on volunteers and parents. The Brooklyn Free School, which opened in 2004,  models similar ideals as the Manhattan Free School, and has been successful with double the previous enrollment and a waiting list to experience these extreme methods. I think it's an incredibly interesting idea. I disliked being told exactly what I had to do, what I was going to learn and when I was going to learn it. Yes, I understand that these subjects and content areas are taught for a purpose, and that purpose is mainly to pass tests created for the cookie cutter student. However, what if we were all able to choose what we wanted to learn?

"A Vision of Students Today"

Technology...is it really enhancing our education?